


rich kids

by Oxford



Category: Marvel (Comics), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, Multi, President AU, for eggos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-04
Updated: 2018-01-04
Packaged: 2019-02-28 06:35:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13265748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oxford/pseuds/Oxford





	rich kids

Jean gazed into the mirror at her perfectly coiffed hair, scowled, and ran her fingers through it impulsively, giving it a tousled, messy look that suited her brilliantly. It had been almost a year since she had shorn off most of fiery locks, and she had maintained it well. It helped Laura, to do something with her claws that wasn't killing every month or so. The fourteen year old applied a light layer of mascara, then exited the bathroom, passing Hank on her way out. He was sprawled elegantly across the hall, his long body nearly spanning the entire space. The brunet was happily buried in a new book, but his hands were shaking. Jean paused next to him, and briefly rested her hand on his shoulder and giving it a squeeze. He smiled up at her gratefully, and she winked in reply. Jean then returned to her own bedroom, only to find Laura cross-legged in the middle of her bedspread, glaring viciously at her claws, which kept poking out unasked. Her whole body was trembling. Jean hopped up on the bed beside her, and smiled gently at the older girl.

"Is this okay?" she murmured, and held her hand above Laura's own. The other girl nodded silently, her eyes still somewhat wild. Jean rested her palm atop the other girl's, and knit their fingers together. "May I lean my head on your shoulder?" asked Jean, and Laura hesitated, then nodded. Jean scooted closer, and rested her spiky head on Laura’s shaking shoulder. Almost immediately, Laura stilled, her tremors ceasing. "I trust you, Laura. And..." Jean wavered uncertainty, then continued. "And...we love you." Laura shivered, and squeezed Jean's hand tightly. She hopped off the enormous bed and went to leave the room. The small girl stopped at the door and gave Jean a shy wave, which the redhead returned enthusiastically. Now with the room to herself, Jean flopped back down onto her back, and closed her eyes. Thanks to everybody's frazzled nerves, Jean had been up almost the entire night soothing her brothers and sisters. She was loathe to wake either of their mothers, especially with all the responsibilities they both had since Kitty had taken office. She didn't like to be a bother. To be an inconvenience to anyone had always been one of her worst fear when she was a young child. Jean had grown out of that for the most part now, though. She didn't own anyone any anything. That was something Illyana and Kitty taught her.

The ride to their new school – or torture chamber, as Bobby had christened it when neither their mothers nor Laura could hear him – was tense but pleasant enough. The president had decided not to accompany them, if only to make things less of a show. Illyana sat across from Jean, however, with her hand lightly resting on Laura’s knee, and eyes hidden behind a killer pair of shades. Scott couldn't sit still, so Jean found a piece of string in her bag and handed it to him. Unwinding and winding it around his fingers was one of the few things that could help him work out the kinks in his mind sometimes. She knew them all.

“Jean, we’re here.” Laura tugged on her hand, and Jean shook her head violently. She had to stop letting her thoughts run away from her like that. It was dangerous for anyone, but especially for her. She moved to get out of the car, but Hank put his hand on her arm and forced a pair of dark sunglasses into her hand. She put them on, and gave him a grateful smile. Cameras immediately bombarded her when she stepped out of the limousine, and Jean was grateful for the sunglasses. The flash of the cameras dug into her skull at some ceremony or other a week ago and she had almost passed out. God bless Hank. He remembered everything.

Illyana was acting as a buffer between them and the crowd, with some help from their reliable press secretary, who happened to be a startlingly powerful mutant herself. “No questions. None of our children will be answering questions today. Amanda, stay here, I'm going to take them inside.” While Amanda delivered a short statement, the stately blonde (who in Jean’s opinion looked like she was born to be important; a queen at the very least) hustled her children towards the entrance, as far away from the cameras as possible.

“Was it like this for President McDougal’s kids too, Yana?” Bobby said, clutching the straps of his backpack nervously and trying to catch his breath. “

Not quite like this, no.” Their unsmiling blonde mother’s lips quivered for the smallest second, and she pulled each of the children into a quick but meaningful hug. “If anyone gives you trouble, just text me their surname, and I’ll put their parents in a world of hurt.” The words may have been humorous, but the serious tone in which they were delivered and the children’s grave faces left no doubt that Illyana would back up her words. They nodded solemnly to show their understanding, and simultaneously surrounded their mother for a group hug.

After Illyana left, Jean took control. “Alright, X-Peeps, if we can handle super-villains, we can handle snobby rich teenagers.” She said it with conviction, but her voice shook. She lead the way into the building, Scott following closely behind her. The minute they stepped into the building, an aid popped up and smiled broadly at them.

“Welcome to Sidwell Friends School! My name is Kelly. We are delighted to have you. It is our pleasure to host the students of such an esteemed President. Please follow me, and I will direct you to your first class. As requested, you have all been placed in the same homeroom.” She headed off, her heels clicking on the polished floor. After a brief, startled moment, they followed quickly behind her. Students parted like the Red Sea around them, but at least they were used to strange looks. Warren and Laura drew the most attention. Warren’s wings were concealed by a clever glamour Illyana had created that essentially hide them in another dimension, ensuring they wouldn't be bumped into, but he was definitely a looker. Laura’s face was well known for other reasons. Kelly pulled her aside before she could follow the others into the classroom.

“Miss Laura, I just wanted to thank you. You saved my child’s life once. And you've given him the courage to change his name. Thank you for everything you've done.” Kelly’s voice was sincere and honest, but Laura felt like throwing up. That wasn't who she was; she wasn't a hero, and she had never wanted to be. Saving lives was easier on her conscience than taking them. Instead of saying any of this, she gave Kelly a quick nod and a short smile, then hurried after her siblings. Jean picked up on her mood almost immediately.

“Are you alright? Did Kelly say something to you?” Jean’s eyes were hard, and Laura could tell she was ready to go on the warpath for her sister, if need be. Laura shook her head, and Jean looked skeptical, but Laura didn't get the sensation that meant Jean was trying to read her mind. At least she trusted her enough not to do that. It hadn't been that way, always.

“Girls, take a seat, please.” Their teacher said from the front of the room, and they were forced to drop into the only seats available. Thanks to Kelly, Laura was on the opposite side of the room from her siblings. Jean mouthed ‘sorry’ from her seat behind Bobby, and Laura shrugged to let her see it was fine, even if it did bother her. The girl across from her was trying to make eye contact, but Laura stared down at her desk. Unlike most of them that she had seen in token high school movies, this one was free of graffiti or slurs and carefully polished. Rich kid schools were above that, apparently. She kept her head down when the teacher started calling role, fear knitting her stomach. It had been easy - as easy as something like that could be - to change Scott and Jean’s legal names, seeing how their parents were dead in this universe and Kitty was their legal guardian, but it was a little harder with Laura. Technically, she didn't exist in the legal system, since she had no birth certificate and had never been registered under any form government. The only records of her were from the lab, so Kitty had no choice but to use them when they enrolled her. Unfortunately, they contained her dead name. The teacher swept through the A-D section, only pausing momentarily on Bobby’s name, which would be unfamiliar to him. Laura could feel Jean’s eyes on her, and she clenched her hands into fists, digging her fingernails into her palms. She couldn't lose it, not here. She was brave enough to do this.

“Logan Kinney?” His voice was warm and friendly, the kind any teacher would use when speaking to a new student, but it still made Laura’s skin crawl. She raised her hand, then put it down once he had seen it. There was no way she was going to speak up about it in class. She'd speak to him afterward. The rest of the period passed in a blur. There was some introductions among her siblings and the other kids, but Laura stayed silent, and examined each student in turn. It was a habit she had never been able to shake, and it eased her nerves in a way she couldn't explain. None of them seemed like they were a potential threat. Then again, there were few mutants in the school, so she would be dealing primarily with sapiens. They were dangerous in their own way. The minute the bell rang, she got up from her desk so quickly that the girl next to her startled and knocked over her water bottle. Instinctively Laura’s hand shot out and she caught it before it hit the ground.

“Th-Thank you!” The other girl stammered. Her eyes were wide with surprise, but not fear. “I'm Shelly. What's your name?” She didn't go to shake Laura’s hand, which she was thankful for. Normal teenagers don't do that.

“Laura,” Laura said, giving her a shy attempt at a smile. “I am new.”

“Yeah, I noticed,” she replied, with a laugh. It wasn't a mocking or unfriendly one, though. “Good luck in here, P.K.” She left for her next class, and waved. Jean appeared, hovering over her shoulder, a minute later.

“Made a friend?” She asked, pointing after Shelly. Laura shrugged, and dodged Jean’s arm around the shoulder, heading for the teacher’s desk. He looked up, and set his pen down from where he had been making notes.

“Hello.” He said, somewhat uncertainly, yet not in a way that made Laura feel like she had done something wrong.

“Hi,” she echoed, in a voice barely over a mutter. “Um, actually, I am a girl, so - call me Laura instead.” He listened patiently, nodding after she was done.

“Whatever I can do to make you more comfortable here, Laura.” He had a kind face, and blue eyes that would've made another girl want to trust him. Laura wasn't that kind of girl. “I’m Mr. Wolford. If you ever need anything, just ask.” Laura nodded briskly, and hurried away. She hated having to do things like that. She was tired of feeling like she had to “look like a normal girl” in order for people to see her as one. It would make everything so much easier if she was more like Jean. Jean already had a gentle, feminine face; She wasn't built like a brick version of a person. She didn't even need to put makeup on to look like a graceful elf. Of course, Laura knew all those things didn't make a girl, but it certainly helped to blend in to society's standards sometimes. Like in high school. Teenagers, more so than adults, looked at your exterior. Though for most, that went without saying. Laura was not… _accustomed_ to spending time with other people of her own age in a conventional setting. She had a lot to learn.

“How do you like D.C. so far?” The girl next to her asked. Laura glanced around, and not seeing any of her siblings in the immediate vicinity, was forced to come to the realization that the blonde was talking to her. With reluctance, but trying to hide it, she turned to face her and focused her gaze on the girl’s eyebrows.

“It is alright,” Laura murmured. They really were immaculately done. She probably had a makeup artist that did them for her every morning. “Much… more populous than I had realized.” Her eyes met the other girl’s for a second before darting away again. Very blue, Laura noticed. The other girl smiled, and reached out before Laura realized what she was doing. The girl’s touch on her arm was warm and firm, and held no ill intent, but Laura flinched away before she could stop herself.

“I know exactly what you mean.” To Laura’s relief, she didn’t acknowledge it, though she did remove her hand swiftly. She also rolled her eyes meaningfully at a pack of other girls on the other side of the classroom. “If you ever need help with anything, or you just want to hang or something, hit me up. I’m Kayla Song. Here, take my phone, you can add yourself on Snapchat!” She said all of this very rapidly, and Laura blinked slowly once she was finished, trying to process what had just happened.

“Oh, um, I don’t - I don’t actually… have Snapchat?” replied Laura hesitantly, and a little nervously. Laura’s phone, despite being the latest edition of its brand, was all function, no fun. She had never needed it to be anything more, nor wanted it to be. Now she was having second thoughts. Kayla blinked, clearly confused, for a moment, but she quickly recovered.

“Oh! Alright! Well, just let me put my number in your phone and text me, then.” Feeling a little bit like she was on an alien planet, Laura opened her contacts, and handed her phone to Kayla, who tapped in her details with practiced speed. “Thanks! Text me after school!” With that, she departed for her class, and Laura was left standing by her desk with more than a little whiplash. She shook her head like a dog trying to get water out of its ears.

“Who was that?” Jean appeared next to her, and glared after Kayla threateningly, like she was going to mind-control her to doing something stupid if Laura didn’t give her a favorable report.

“Kayla. She is nice.” Laura assured her. Jean was wonderful, but she worried too much.


End file.
